Have you all read this article: “New age sex trend“? If not, read it first, then come back.

First of all, I think it is laudable that issues dealing with gays and lesbians is getting light in the dailies, amid other societal issues that is.

But that said, I wonder, did the author (Stevens Muendo) even do a background research on what he was writing on? Seriously?

First thing I see is this phrase: “Sam is gay as he finally concedes to me. He has been in the business of male prostitution since he was in high school.“. Honestly, is he trying to say that being gay = being a male sex worker? I won’t even begin to question what he meant by ‘male prostitution’ since that could be something totally different! (something like a man who has sex with women for money…). This is definitely not true. Not all gay men are sex workers. Not all male sex workers are gay!

The article insinuates that gay people are all about sex and money, that gay men ‘become gay’ to lure men who want sex in return for money.

It also makes it look like bisexuality is a phase and that one can ‘get out of it’.

The writer clearly did not do enough research and relied on archaic information and supposed ‘quotes’ from eons ago and with facts only he would have conjured up!

He then ends the article saying: “All this time, the older generation continues to bury their heads as homosexuality and lesbianism takes root among the youth.”

Basically what I am saying is that I think people writing about such issues in the media, really, should do better research. However, I do assume that this is deliberately overlooked as sensationalism and readership is of more importance to them than the reality. *shrug*

On a different note though, did y’all see the image he used on the left side of the story? Those words put together to form an image of two men kissing each other? Oh, if you didn’t notice that then, Oops!! I particularly like that image! Please please someone tell me where I can download it!

*Over & Out*

Advertisements

Sharing is Awesome!

Like this:

I’m not much of a fan of Valentines. I think it is way too overrated. I say this bearing in mind that yesterday I wore a red top! Someone actually told me that I subconcsiously wanted to wear red! I don’t know. For me, myconscious is clear!

I had a chilled out evening with mommy dearest in town at a very noisy joint full of people enjoying their vals as it were. For us, Valentine’s was an afterthought, an “Oh, and thanks for being my valentine!” kind of thing.

The reason this post has the above title is not because of the way the day went, it was because of the way it almost ended.

After I left to go home, I got tripped three times. All on my left leg. The first time I tripped, nothing happened. The second time, my sandal got loose. The third time, well… it cut off! I had to walk bare-left-foot for a ka-distance to a supermarket and buy new shoes! I was even lucky it was still early enough to get a supermarket in the first place.

So I bought a shoe, wore it, and went to take a bus home. I even left the idea I had to buy a bottle of wine for myself. Somewhere not too far from my stage but not close enough to walk home, the bus broke down! And it completely refused to get jumpstarted! Eish! We had to wait for the one that was behind to pick us up!

Sharing is Awesome!

Like this:

Happy New Year everyone! Yes! I know! I’ve been MIA!!! So deeply sorry for that. I guess work got the best of me and I totally lost my writing mojo (Why does everyone say that!)

Anyway, here’s to a sort of come back. And I ain’t making any promises. I will do my best to write posts every now and then. No promises though. I won’t say you’ll get a post once every week but that’s what I’m aiming for. At least one post. Reading and writing helps me improve, gives me somewhere to unleash, pour out my soul & stuff. Kinda like how my mind goes into thought mode when I’m in the shower! (Don’t ask!) Lets just say that these could be my new years resolutions.

I also hope to read, and comment more, on my fellow bloggers’ blogs. I have my google reader on and I will try my level best to keep up.

Hope you all have a marvellous, prosperous, fun-filled, challenge-filled year as I do!

Sharing is Awesome!

Like this:

Why do gay people assert their sexuality as they do? Why is it that someone says they are ‘lesbian and are proud about it’? We see it in news pieces, hear it along the streets, and in social media. For those of us who really don’t give a rat’s ass (no pun intended) about who you sleep with, it can be quite unnerving.

But I usually go further and ask the question. Why assert it? Why say it? What’s the big deal? You don’t see me going around and say “I am _sexual and proud about it!” do you?

Here is one way of looking at it. It is known that being gay for aeons has been viewed at as a taboo, something shunned from society, something wrong. At this point in writing this I feel like this must have been written somewhere else but let me go on. I feel like straight people (which is assumed to be the majority, depending on your definition of straight – story for another day) have never needed to think about their sexuality. Only a handful have been involved in some form of same sex activity which (they say) somewhat made them settle into their heterosexuality. Because of heteronormativity, anything but heterosexuality, is viewed as ‘abnormal’.

So a gay person trying to understand their sexuality begins this understand knowing that they are abnormal, shunned and a taboo. They feel worthless and outcast from the rest of society who happen to be heterosexual.

In their reconciliation of their sexuality, they begin coming to terms with it and begin accepting themselves for who they are and it is in this acceptance that they feel the necessity to assert their sexuality and in some ways make the world know that they are okay with it.

This, for them, I figure, is one way of coming to terms with them being who they are and is also another way of trying to tell society that they may view his/her/their sexuality as a taboo/something to be shunned but they don’t have to because he/she/they are fine with it.

Maybe my analysis is not in depth, but it also helps me in some ways, come to understand why it is important to mention it.

But the so called ‘liberal self’ in me wonders, is it important? Why is it so important for anyone to mention their sexuality with such pride? Arent we all ‘proud of being who we are’? Maybe not. But I think this is something we as a society are yet to come to terms with.

We still live in a “majority rules and directs” kind of life. We have not allowed ourselves to be open to diversity and fluidity. Because of how we have been socialised, we are expected to to view the world in a “dichotomous, gendered, with specific roles, one sex” type of beings; heterosexual and heteronormative. We, for some reason or other, expect everyone coming out of a female womb is either going to be male or female and will be heterosexual; will conform to certain roles ascribed to their gender, and these roles include being sexually attracted to the opposite gender and nothing else. We even further expect that the female role and gender will be below and submissive to the male gender and role.

I still insist, this must have been mentioned elsewhere. I have just touched on bits and pieces of the broader topic. But these are things I feel need to be interrogated further, thought through and, be there any barriers, those barriers to be eliminated.

For me, I hope for a society where diversity and fluidity are a norm. Where being who we are is just that, being.

I attended the first ever OUT FILM FESTIVAL in Kenya which was held at Goethe Institut, Maendeleo House. Here is a brief review of what was.

The event was held on Friday 2nd from 6pm to 8pm and Saturday 3rd the whole day. I only went on Friday and boy was it packed! See a (dark) pic I took:

I was standing at the back! Apparently, according to this story here, the organisers anticipated for a 60pax turnout but lo and behold, 200 came!

Its easy to assume that most peeps who showed up were just curious. I for one was indeed. But my main motivation was that it was the FIRST!

Just having such an event in Kenya for me is a great stride. It means we’re moving somewhere.

I only feel sad that the reporting on that Daily Nation story was done poorly. But that’s a story for another day.

Most of the films on the list I’d already watched. Such as, Kuchus of Uganda, Milk and Transformations. It was unfortunate some of the Kenyan productions wouldn’t be viewed because of stigma and discrimination but that was understandable.

Kuchus of Uganda is a film (not well shot) about the gay people in Uganda, and especially so in Kampala. It highlights the issues they face day to day, their joys and pains, their ups and downs. It seems it was done by a hand held camcorder but at least it captures the views of the community.

Milk is a famous famous show and I’d only direct you to Wikipedia for more details and tell you that its a MUST WATCH. Seriously.